N4MessageTravel1 min
電車が止まってる
Three friends on a trip: one of them is stuck on a stopped train.
A group chat between three friends, in casual Japanese. Read it to find the new plan: who goes first, which bus Ken takes, and where they meet.
ごめんなさい！電車が止まってる。前の駅で事故があったって。
えっ、大丈夫？今どこ？
まだ二つ前の駅。動くまで、少し時間がかかるみたい。
私とみきは、もうバス乗り場にいるよ。旅館へ行くバスは十時だよね。
うん。けん、十時のバスは無理かも。
そうだね。二人は先に行って。次のバスで行くよ。
次のバスは何時？
十一時。旅館には十二時ごろ着くと思う。
分かった。じゃあ、旅館で待ってるね。昼ご飯は三人で食べよう。
ありがとう。また連絡するね。
ごめんなさい！電車が止まってる。事故があったって。
大丈夫？今どこ？
まだ二つ前の駅。
私たちはバス乗り場にいるよ。バスは十時だよね。
二人は先に行って。次のバスで行くよ。
次のバスは何時？
十一時。
分かった。旅館で待ってるね。昼ご飯は三人で食べよう。
ありがとう。
Click a word to look it up in this site’s vocabulary.
More sentences on this in “Language in use”: Japanese for travelling
- Words
- 104
- Sentences
- 22
- Words per sentence
- 4.7
- in the vocabulary
- 100 %
- measured level
- N4
- Reading time
- 1 min
Grammar in this text
These forms appear in the text in real use. Switch on “Show grammar” above the text to highlight them.
事故があったって
って at the end passes on what someone else said: “there was an accident, they say”. そうだ for hearsay: I hear that →
無理かも
かも is the casual short form of かもしれない: might. かもしれない: might →
かかるみたい
みたい: it seems — Ken is guessing from what he sees and hears. ようだ and みたいだ: it seems, it looks like →
The words from N4 up in this text
Not the hard words in general, but those at your level: all 13 of the 65 words in this text are at N4 or above. You will know everything else by the time you get here.
じゃあ
well then; in that case
N4また
again; also
N4乗り場
boarding point; rank (for taxis); stop
N4事故
accident
N4先に
first; ahead (of someone)
N4動く
to move; to work (of a machine)
N4思う
to think (have an opinion)
N4旅館
Japanese-style inn
N4止まる
to stop (by itself)
N4無理
impossible; too much
N4着く
to arrive
N4経つ
to pass (of time)
N3連絡
contact; getting in touch
N4
The word lists for this text
The words in this text appear in 22 lists on this site; the number after each says how many come from that list. Having read the text, you have just needed these very words — and can practise exactly them.
Comprehension questions
4 questions on the text. With each answer the sentence it comes from appears — a question whose answer you cannot find in the text tests nothing.
1. Why is Ken’s train not moving?
Look at Ken’s first message.
Look for 事故 (accident).
前の駅で事故があったって
2. Which bus will Ken take?
Hanna asks when the next bus leaves.
Look at Ken’s answer straight after her question.
十一時
3. Where will Miki and Hanna wait for Ken?
Miki answers near the end of the chat.
Look for the place in front of で.
旅館で待ってるね
4. What will the three of them do together?
Look at Miki’s last message.
Look for 三人で (the three of us).
昼ご飯は三人で食べよう